Saturday, November 28, 2015

An Experiment which Far Exceeded Expectations

Before heading down to mom's house in Virginia, I packed the car with some contributions to the holiday culinary efforts, primarily a couple of bottles of homemade booze:




On the right is a bottle of my typical homemade limoncello, a strong, clean citrus liqueur made with pure grain alcohol, lemon zest, and sugar, diluted to proper drinking strength, approximately 50% alcohol by volume. That bottle of light pink liquid on the left is a new thing for me, my take on a not-too-well-defined folk liqueur known as cherry bounce. There are recipes for bounce made with bourbon, brandy, vodka... a whole plethora of different base alcohols. For my first batch, I used rum, which was suggested for bringing out the fruitiness of the cherries, and added a pound of sugar to counteract the tartness of the cherries. As far as the cherries are concerned, I picked two gallons of cherries on the job, the first of which I used to make homemade maraschino cherries, the second of which went into a gallon jar to be macerated in rum.

I wasn't sure how well the experiment would turn out, but I have to say that it was an unqualified success. Next year, I plan on repeating it, and using other cherries to make different variants- using whisky, brandy, and the like. This experiment far exceeded my expectations, but that doesn't preclude further experimentation.

8 comments:

Robert Mcneilly said...

Ahh , limoncello. Made quince jam from the quince bush in the front yard to pass out to family and friends at thanksgiving this year.
I mix mine with strawberry preserves. Good blend of sweet and tart.

zombie rotten mcdonald said...

As a diabetic, I suggest you post trigger warnings when gloating about delicious beverages I can't drink...

Big Bad Bald Bastard said...

Ahh , limoncello. Made quince jam from the quince bush in the front yard to pass out to family and friends at thanksgiving this year.

Quince jam is really good- I got a bunch of quinces at work. I paired the quince jam with manchego cheese, a classic combination.

As a diabetic, I suggest you post trigger warnings when gloating about delicious beverages I can't drink...

You post trigger warnings when you see bands that play in my area on weekends when I can't take a day off, and it's a deal, sir!

Robert Mcneilly said...

I will have to get some cheese. And make some cherry bounce.

Big Bad Bald Bastard said...

I will have to get some cheese.

It's a great combo.

And make some cherry bounce.

You won't be disappointed.

zombie rotten mcdonald said...

"You post trigger warnings when you see bands that play in my area on weekends when I can't take a day off, and it's a deal, sir!"

Did I mention traveling to MPLS to see a star-studded tribute to Big Star's Third album, with Paleotectonics and Snag?

Big Bad Bald Bastard said...

Did I mention traveling to MPLS to see a star-studded tribute to Big Star's Third album, with Paleotectonics and Snag?

That's OUTSTANDING!

zombie rotten mcdonald said...

https://empireofthesenseless.wordpress.com/2015/10/06/every-night-i-tell-myself-i-am-the-cosmos-i-am-the-wind/